As the city of Pittsburgh mourns the loss of Franco Harris, the Pittsburgh International Airport honored the Steelers legend by moving his amazing statue from its regular place to a more prominent place in the lobby.
The day before Harris’ death, a story by Mike DeFabo of The Athletic detailed the two statues. The piece included this amusing tidbit from Andrew Masich, the president and CEO of the Heinz History Center in Pittsburgh:
“It was obvious as soon as we installed them in about 2005 that everybody recognized Franco Harris. And who’s that pirate guy next to him? … I feel a little bit bad for George. But then I remember, boy, he’s standing next to Franco Harris.” (h/t The Athletic)
Harris was a huge fan of the wax statue, as this photo of his recreation of the “Immaculate Reception” shows.
Harris was to be honored with his No. 32 jersey being retired at halftime of the Steelers’ home game against the Las Vegas Raiders on Saturday night. The Raiders and Steelers met in the divisional round of the 1972 playoffs at Pittsburgh’s Three Rivers Stadium, where the “Immaculate Reception” was born.
Fifty years later, the play’s impact on the sport still reverberates.
In 12 seasons with the Steelers, Harris won four Super Bowls, was named Super Bowl IX MVP, and made one All-Pro team and nine Pro Bowl teams. He finished his career with 2,949 carries for 12,120 yards and 91 touchdowns.
In 1990, Harris was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A spot next to the U.S.’s first president at the Pittsburgh airport is impressive enough.
But as Pittsburghers already knew, Harris always stood alone.
